


Animal Magnetism

by ACatWhoWrites, krisbaek



Category: C-Pop, EXO (Band), K-pop
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Dogs, M/M, Yifan finds a lost dog, Yifan is a Good Samaritan, more like a dog losesitself because it falls in love with a handsome man on the street
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-15
Updated: 2018-05-15
Packaged: 2019-05-02 23:59:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14556426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACatWhoWrites/pseuds/ACatWhoWrites, https://archiveofourown.org/users/krisbaek/pseuds/krisbaek
Summary: Yifan's not a dog person, but he may like dog people.





	Animal Magnetism

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt #2018-009

Yifan has never been one for dogs. He likes them well enough—in a _better yours than mine_ sort of way—but he's decidedly a cat person. They suit his aesthetic more than any whiny, droolly dog.

So it's a true mystery as to why he's sharing a table outside a cafe in a foreign city with a stubby-legged dog that's been panting for the last ten minutes as though it had just run a marathon.

“You've had your break. Don't you think you should be going?”

The dog smiles at him, and it's almost charming except for the bead of saliva at the end of its lolling tongue.

To think his morning had been going so well...

Yifan was enjoying a lovely walk along the sunny street after a morning workout when he hears a rhythmic panting behind him. Like, dog-panting, not jogger-panting or some creeper. He looks around, but there’s no dogwalker. He walks again, and the panting follows him. Next time he stops, he feels something tugging at his pantleg.

It’s a clawed paw on the end of a short foreleg of a compact blond and white dog. With its big, triangular ears and lack of tail and obvious distinctiveness, Yifan knows it’s a Corgi. It’s one of the few breeds he can readily identify, but beyond that, they all look the same.

“...Hi.” The dog wears no collar and isn’t trailing a leash. Yifan can’t hear anyone calling after it or whistling; it’s just taking a walk along the sunny street and looking for company, apparently. 

Yifan’s a cat person. Dogs are pushy and needy; he’s more for quiet, calm company. They’re more elegant, too, which matches his style.

He’s apparently the dog’s style, though, and the Corgi walks with him when he sets off again.

“Uh…go home, _Xiao Guo._ Please…” The Corgi smiles at him, pleased with the attention, and keeps pace as best as its little legs can carry him. It follows closely, right by his heel. He thinks he recognizes the dog; a guy on his floor owns a tailless blond and white Corgi—Yifan’s caught himself mesmerized by its fluffy bottom as it walks down the hall—but without a collar, he can’t be sure who the dog is or whom he belongs to. 

The dog can’t possibly be a stray, with how well it walks with him and just how friendly it is. 

Some people in the crowd smile at the little dog; a couple girls even have their phones out to record the cute dog and long-legged man who don’t seem to match each other.

“You should really go home,” Yifan says, looking over his shoulder. “Your owner will be worried. Do you want to make her cry? She’ll be sad without you.” He stops at a crosswalk, but the Corgi overwalks him and turns around on the street, wondering why it’s suddenly alone. “Don’t stand in the street!” Yifan hisses. He snaps his fingers and points beside his feet. “Come!” he commands in Korean.

Whoever owns the dog trained it well. The Corgi looks down the street and hustles back to Yifan’s side, sitting close to his feet and letting its tongue loll out the side of its mouth.

A little girl and her mother stop at the crosswalk, and the girl leans around her mom’s legs to look at the dog. “Mama, can I pet the puppy?!”

“Ask the puppy’s daddy, first.”

“Puppy’s daddy,” she says eagerly, “can I pet your puppy?”

“Uh…” It’s friendly with him and seems interested in the girl. “Sure... Go slow, okay?”

“Okay!” She crouches down and carefully waddles around her mom’s legs to face the dog, reaching with her hand. “Hi, puppy…” she whispers loudly. “Can I pet you?”

The Corgi sniffs her fingers and licks them, rear end wiggling as its pet.

“Such a friendly dog, but he really should be on a leash, don’t you think?” The mom holds her cheek in her hand, mothers’ worry lines creasing her forehead. “He’s very attached to you, but if he should run off…”

“You’re right. I’m watching him for a friend, who forgot a leash. Thank you for the concern.”

She laughs behind her hand. “You could always carry him, he’s so small!” She looks back at the new friends and scolds her daughter crossly, “Oh, honey, don’t sit on the ground!”

The crosslight changes, and mother and daughter bow before leaving first. 

Yifan looks at the Corgi; the Corgi smiles back, fur ruffled and messy from vigorous ruffling. “I’m not waiting for you,” he mutters. The dog is heavier than it looks, groaning a little when Yifan grabs him around the chest and beneath its butt. There’s a bit of wriggling, just so it can place its forepaws on his shoulder and see behind them. It’s probably never been up so high but shows no fear of heights.

He gets even more looks, now, carrying a Corgi through the city, but Yifan figures it’ll be safer and faster.

Yifan stops at a cafe and deposits the dog on one of the colorful bistro chairs. “ _Stay_ ,” he says firmly. The dog does. Yifan steps inside to order, asking for some water and a dog-safe treat as well. He was raised with manners.

The dog inhales the treat, licking crumbs from its muzzle and waving a paw in the air, as though asking for more.

“That's all you're getting from me.” Yifan eyes the Corgi over his tea. What should he do?

“Well...” he sighs. “What now? Will you behave, if I take you back with me?”

The Corgi licks its snout, and Yifan supposes that's close enough to a “yes.”

Rather than risk more unwanted attention, Yifan hails a cab. The driver mutters something about the dog not pissing on his seats or so help him, but Yifan tunes him out and opens the window a little bit so his companion can stick its nose out.

The driver's not thrilled about the smears on his window from the dog's nose, but Yifan is sure there have been worse things in the cab and pays the driver with quiet thanks.

The Corgi leaps out before him, waiting with eager wriggling and dancing on the sidewalk. “ _Hey_.” He catches the dog before it can wander off, lifting it in his arms. “Patience, Xiao Guo. My room isn't all that exciting to look forward to. I need to charge my phone and find out who to call about you...”

An elderly couple pet the dog fondly before leaving the elevator at their floor. Yifan sets it at his feet and pushes its butt until it sits, looking back at him with a dog-smile.

His own room is at the top floor of the hotel, overlooking the city rather than courtyard in the center of the U-shaped building. He doesn't mind, except it means the sun falls right into his room in the morning. Hotels never have curtains that can keep out light, he's found.

“C'mon.” He unlocks the door. “Make a mess, and I'm putting you in the laundry shute, though, understand?” The dog woofs and walks right around Yifan's feet to sit outside at his neighbor's door. “I'm not letting you in there. Come on.”

The Corgi tilts its head and looks up at the door, maybe reading the number, if dogs can read. It shoves its nose in the crack at the bottom of the door and snuffles loudly, ignoring Yifan's shushing and cajoling.

Unfortunately, early afternoon is the time his neighbor is in their room and not out getting lunch or walking through a tour or just being anywhere but their hotel to witness Yifan trying to reason with a dog.

The man's young, shorter than Yifan, and has lightened hair bearing evidence of a lot of stress, sticking up at odd angles away from his face. He smiles when he sees the dog and immediately scoops it into his arms with a grunt.

“Mongryongie!”

Yifan stands, stupefied, with his foot in the door of his own room and stretched out into the hall like he's stretching for a run. “Is this your dog?” he asks intelligently.

“Yes!” He's cuter when he smiles, eyes brighter and posture considerably more relaxed. “This is Mongryong. I'm Byun Baekhyun.” He shifts his dog rather than setting it down to shake Yifan's hand. “Come on in. Please.”

Yifan introduces himself and removes his foot from his doorway to follow his neighbor.

Baekhyun carries Mongryong to the bed, flopping onto it and squeezing the Corgi until it wriggles away and jumps to the floor with a bark.

“ _Shh_ , Mongryong. I'm still angry with you and don't want to play right now.” He looks at Yifan. “Where did you find him?”

“I'm not sure where it was exactly, but he followed me to an outdoor cafe.”

“With a green and white striped overhang thing?” Yifan nods. “I know it. Of it, anyway. I was maybe a block away from there this morning, meandering while I had the time, and I went into this one shop to look for souvenirs for my family, and he was gone when I came out!

“I had him tied to a bike rack outside, like I’ve done _tons_ of times before, but he managed to slip out of his collar, so I had a leash and collar but no dog. He does have a harness,” he adds quickly, as though Yifan would judge, “but he ate part of it...and I've not gotten a new one or tried to fix it, yet.” He eyes the dog down his nose. Mongryong pants happily at the attention. “Silly me assuming he'd be a good boy and wait for me. I bet he saw a big dog and had to try and make friends.”

Yifan laughs. “Why do you think that?”

“Mongryong _loves_ tall dogs! Any dog bigger than him, and he’s on his back, showing his belly. The other dog doesn’t even have to be like an alpha dog? My friend Kyungsoo has a Golden Retriever, and this is like the _sweetest_ dog ever. Not a mean bone in in big body. No desire to dominate or whatever. Loves kittens and babies and having his butt scratched...here comes my little Corgi who just rolls over for no reason. Just watch. Hold your hand over him.” Yifan reaches out, palm down, and Mongryong eyes him a moment before sitting down and rolling over, legs splayed.

“Wow. Shameless.” He runs his fingers through the soft belly fur. When his fingers scratch over the dog's bottom ribs, a hind leg starts kicking.

Baekhyun laughs. “Right? I have no idea why he’s like that. I tried looking it up, and some people on a pet board I checked out said their rescue dogs do that, but they were abused? I’ve had this guy since he was a baby. My dad got him from a breeder for me, as a present. Never boarded him or anything, and the guy who watches him when I can’t is like the ultimate dog dad, so the worst abuse happening there is being cuddled too much.”

“It could be a learned behavior,” Yifan muses, running his fingers through the dog's soft fur. “Don't they say pets take after their owners?”

“ _Well_...I will admit I enjoy a good belly rub now and then, but I'm not on my back for just anyone.” Baekhyun meets his eyes. There's a pause that lasts maybe a beat or two too long, then Baekhyun looks away. Maybe Yifan imagines it. “I don't think I'm nearly so easy as this wanton thing.” Baekhyun nudges his dog with his foot.

Yifan coughs. This person, as much as they deny it, really suits their dog. “What are you here for? Vacation?”

“Work, actually.” He crouches and hefts his dog into his arms again. “I'm a reporter. There's a new yoga studio that has days for yoga with pets. I'm covering their opening, and they invited Mongryongie, too.”

“Oh. When's filming?”

“Tomorrow, so thank you thank you _thank you_ for finding him. I was freaking out. I could still do my job or whatever, but he's my son. I swear I nearly passed out from freaking out so bad.” He pulls out his phone. “I gotta tell everyone he's back...”

Yifan's never been very good at keeping a conversation going, but talking with Baekhyun is remarkably easy and effortless. Baekhyun does a lot of the talking, tripping over his words sometimes and backtracking, telling his stories in a circle, but he pays close attention to what Yifan says, reacting maybe a little too animatedly. Yifan even finds himself bringing Mongryong the dog into the conversation like its owner does, as well.

He never thought he'd be much of a dog person, but he knows he likes dog people. This one particular dog person, anyway.


End file.
